Lee Philips

Lee Philips, born Leon Friedman on January 10, 1927, in New York, New York, was an American actor, film director, and television director. He died on March 3, 1999, at the age of 72, from progressive supranuclear palsy.

Philips began his career on the Broadway stage, appearing in productions between 1954 and 1956. His credits included Mademoiselle Colombe and Middle of the Night, the latter a Paddy Chayefsky work that would also yield a film adaptation. In the 1959 film version of Middle of the Night, Philips appeared as George, the ex-husband of Kim Novak's character. That same period brought him one of his most prominent screen roles: Michael Rossi in the film adaptation of Peyton Place, in which he starred opposite Lana Turner.

His television work in the early 1960s was extensive. He portrayed Juror Number 5 in the Studio One production of Twelve Angry Men and appeared as Lieutenant Wood in the Death Valley Days episode "The White Healer," a syndicated anthology series hosted by Stanley Andrews. In 1963, he guest starred in "The Galaxy Being," the premiere episode of The Outer Limits, and played a lead role in "Passage on the Lady Anne," an hour-long episode of The Twilight Zone. He returned to The Twilight Zone the following year in "Queen of the Nile," playing a reporter named Jordan "Jordy" Herrick. Also in 1963, he appeared in "Never Wave Goodbye," a two-part episode of The Fugitive. He appeared in Flipper in 1964 and made a guest appearance on Route 66, Season 4, Episode 7. In 1965, he made two appearances on Perry Mason, playing Kevin Lawrence in "The Case of the Golden Venom" and Gordon Evans in "The Case of the Fatal Fortune," and portrayed Harlan Fortune in the Wagon Train episode "The Jarbo Pierce Story." He also guest starred in the Combat! episode "A Walk with an Eagle."

Later in the 1960s, Philips transitioned primarily into directing. His directing credits included episodes of the television series Peyton Place and The Dick Van Dyke Show. In 1973, he directed The Girl Most Likely to..., starring Stockard Channing. He later directed Dick Van Dyke in multiple episodes of Diagnosis: Murder.